Kids In Glass Houses rock with some stellar local support acts

All too often, local bands get overlooked when bigger acts come to town. Why not give them a chance to shine in front of a larger audience and let them play with the cream of the crop? This is something that The Forum Hertfordshire recently set out to change with their new ‘Hatfield rocks’ night.
The first event saw local talent supporting ska-punkers Sonic Boom Six and tonight Hertfordshire based acts get to share the stage with everyone’s favourite Welsh rockers, Kids in Glass Houses.

Shouting Signals / Lost Without Cause / Coastal Cities / Kids In Glass Houses @ The Forum Hertfordshire

Opening the proceedings,
Shouting Signals give it their all with their emo-tinged rock kicking things off in the most energetic of ways. Though somewhat generic, the formula works and the high-octane songs they play from their debut EP ‘Stand Your Ground’ are a perfect opener to the gig and a cover of Whitney Houston’s ‘I Wanna Dance With Somebody’ is an unexpected yet welcome treat. Next up, Hertfordshire three piece
Lost Without Cause send some polished punk-rock our way in a solid return after a 14 month hiatus. BBC Introducing: Three Counties presenter Gareth Lloyd was on hand to compere the event and sang the bands praises before they hit the stage, having supported them on the radio in the past. What the band lacked in stage presence, they made up for with their melodic yet hard-hitting tunes and no doubt they’ll be around a lot more in the future now they have their head back in the game. The third support act tonight is
Coastal Cities. Hailing from Buckinghamshire, the young quintet’s twee indie laced with synth and echoing guitars is complimented by Declan Cullen’s fragile vocals as they provide a confident performance in the main support slot. The image and sound of the band are an ideal combination for mainstream success and with a bit more practice and a few extra songs under their belt in 2014, we could easily be seeing them in headline slots sooner rather than later. And for the main event,
Kids in Glass Houses cause pandemonium in The Forum’s 320 capacity Attic. The band and audience take full advantage of the fact that this is a much more intimate setting than they would normally play and as KIGH belt out new tracks from ‘Peace’, the crowd are clearly having the time of their lives, singing back every word. The consummate front man, Aled Phillips has the crowd in the palm of his hand throughout their set, which includes tracks that span all the way back to ‘Smart Casual’. It’s a booming set from a band that have now solidified themselves as one of the finest UK bands around. All in all, this Hatfield Rocks night proved that there’s often a huge untapped resource in the form of local music and The Forum have created an initiative that will hopefully be replicated around the country. 8/10
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https://www.facebook.com/kidsinglasshouses  

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